Westport Center for the Arts Brown Bag Concert – Strum Uklulele Band

The free (donations accepted) Brown Bag Concerts, sponsored by Westport Center for the Arts, connect musicians with local audiences in an intimate space. They are held monthly from 12:10 to 1 p.m. at the Westport Presbyterian Church, 201 Westport Road, Kansas City.

STRUM, which has performed at PorchFestKC, River Market Uke Slam, Malihini Tiki Fest, senior homes, schools, luaus, fundraisers, is committed in equal parts to making music, friends, and fun. It traces its origins to 2014, when Northlander Randi Struxness started a ukulele interest group at North Oak Christian Church. The wider community started offering performance opportunities, and soon the interest group morphed into the performance band, STRUM.

The band members come from diverse musical backgrounds.   Bandleader Randi Struxness is a retired teacher from the North Kansas City School District and has a background in musical theater and dance. Her spouse and wingman, Paul Struxness, is a former member of the North Star Community Band and plays multiple instruments.  Both write original music.

Several band members play other instruments, teach music, perform in choral groups and rock bands, and write original music.  One strummer, Debbie Rommel, is also an accomplished hula dancer/instructor and performs to the Hawaiian songs in the repertoire.

STRUM members include: Lori Hall, Debbie Rommel,Ramie Beck,Steven Boyd, Anne McDonald, Lee-Ann Semsch, Lani Fernandes-Bata,Barb Schaecher, Linda Knoch, Randi Struxness, Becky Ganaban, Mallory McCoy, Rebecca Nunn, Cindy Townsend, Beth Woodford, and Paul Struxness.

Financial assistance for this project has been provided by the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency, and the Arts KC-Regional Arts Council.